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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. mug — to rob
  5. game — a match
  6. race — humankind
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. bear — the animal
  9. mug — a face
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. game — wild animals
  13. scale — size or range
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. prune — to trim
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bear — the animal
  20. scale — in music
  21. race — a contest
  22. plane — a tool
  23. craft — boats
  24. mug — a cup

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com